Packaging of sheets of glass



Dec. 23, 1969 J. NIXON 3,485,351

PACKAGING OF SHEETS OF GLASS Filed Feb. 29, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Inventor Dec. 23, 1969 J- L. NIXON PACKAGING OF SHEETS OF GLASS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 29, 1968 Inventor nited States Patent US. Cl. 206-62 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A tubular casing of resilient waterproof material surrounds stacked glass sheets and end covers having side flaps which bear against outer faces of the tubular casing and are held on to the casing by rigid end frames forced over the end covers and strapped together.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention This invention relates to the packaging of sheets of glass and more especially to methods of packaging glass sheets and the packaging so formed.

In the transporting of glass sheets from the manufac turer to customer, the glass sheets must be protected against accidental breakage, against surface damage due to relative movement between contacting glass surfaces, and against the entry of Water between adjacent sheets. Further the packaging for the sheets must be capable of containing any sheet or sheets broken in transit to prevent the broken glass from falling wholly or partially out of the packaging and thereby constituting a dangerous hazard.

Description of the prior art The above problems have, in the past, been partially solved by packaging stacks of glass sheets in timber crates with sheets of paper between the glass sheets, and then packing the crates with straw. It is very expensive to make a timber crate waterproof and unless the crate is waterproof it must, when loaded with glass, be protected from rain and damp. Additionally conventional timber crates are expensive, have a limited life and require extensive storage space.

A main object of the present invention is to provide an improved method of packaging glass sheets and a new packaging for glass sheets which overcome the disadvantages of the prior methods and packaging.

SUMMARY According to the invention a method of packaging glass sheets comprises stacking glass sheets face-to-face, surrounding the stacked sheets with a tubular casing of resilient waterproof material, closing the ends of the tubular casing with end covers of resilient Waterproof material having side flaps which bear against outer faces of the tubular casing, forcing rigid end frames over the end covers and connecting the end frames together so as to hold them on the ends of the casing.

The end covers may be sealed in position on the tubular casing by means of a waterproof tape. In a preferred embodiment of the invention the end frames may be connected together by passing metal bands around both of, the end frames, which bands are located in grooves in the end frames, and placing the metal bands under tension.

Further according to the invention there is provided a packaging for stacked sheets, comprising a tubular casing of resilient waterproof material for placing around the stack, end covers of resilient waterproof material for closing the ends of the casing and including side flaps which bear against outer faces of the tubular casing, rigid end frames shaped so as to be forced over the end covers and means for connecting the end frames together to hold them on to the ends of the casing.

A' packaging according to the invention may include waterproof tape sealing the end covers in position on the tubular casing. The end frames are preferably formed with grooves locating metal bands which bind the two end frames together.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a packaging for glass sheets according to the invention omitting the means for connecting the rigid end frames together;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the assembled packaging; and

FIG. 3 is a vertical section through the upper part of the assembled packaging of FIG. 2 taken on the line IIIIII of FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings, a packaging for glass sheets which are stacked face-to-face, comprises a tubular casing 11 of rectangular cross-section which is made from a single sheet of resilient waterproof material, comprising at least one layer of fibrous corrugated material sandwiched between two flat layers of fibre board, one or both said layers of fibre board being waterproof. The casing is formed by folding the sheet and joining the abutting edges of the folded sheet with water resistant tape 12. The joint in the tubular casing 11 is made down the centre of one major face of the casing so that all the corners are folded and a rigid tubular construction is obtained.

The ends of the tubular casing are closed with end covers 13 and 14 of resilient waterproof material. The end cover 13 is made from a single sheet of water resistant fibre board by folding down two opposite side flaps 15, leaving a fiat central part 16. Thus the end cover 13 forms a channel into which one end of the tubular casing 11 can be inserted to form a close fit with the side flaps 15 bent over the outer faces of the tubular casing 11. The end cover 14 is identical with the end cover 13, being formed by a central portion 17 with upstanding side flaps 18 which also fit over the outer faces of the casing 11.

Rigid end frames are forced over the end covers, and the end frame shown in FIG. 1 comprises a rectangular timber frame 19 whose internal measurements are such that the frame can be forced over the end cover 13 which is positioned on the tubular casing 11, so as to press the side flaps 15 against the casing 11. Two timber bracer bars 20 are attached to the frame 19 so as to abut against the central part 16 of the end cover 13.

The lower rigid end frame is identical with the upper frame and comprises a rectangular timber frame 21 and two'timber bracer bars 22. The end covers 13 and .14 are mutually interchangeable as are the rigid end frames 19, 2 0 and 21, 22.

A stack of sheets of glass 23 is built up with sheets of paper 24 interleaving the vertical sheets of glass, and the tubular casing 11, whose dimensions match those of the stack of sheets of glass so that it tightly surrounds the stack, is slid over the stack. The end covers 13 and 14 are placed over the open ends of the tubular casing 11 and sealed in position with water resistant tape 25. The casing 11 and the end covers 13 and 14 are thus sealed together to form a moisture resistant package. The paper sheets 24 protect adjacent glass sheets 23 from face-to-face contact with each other.

The timber end frames are then forced over the end cOVers 13 and 14 until the bracer bars 20 and 22 are in abutment with the central parts 16 and 17 of the end covers. The two bracer bars 20 of the upper end frame have grooves 26 formed in their upper surface, and the bracer bars 22 of the lower end frame have corresponding grooves 27 formed in their lower surfaces. The end frames are connected together by metal bands 28 which are passed round both of the end frames, the bands being located in the grooves 26 and 27. The metal bands 28 are placed under tension when their ends are tied together.

The stack of sheets of glass 23 may have a greater height than the height of the tubular casing 11 so that when the metal bands 28 are tensioned the sheets of glass are under compression while the tubular body remains unstressed. Alternatively, when the tubular casing has a slightly greater height than the stack of sheets of glass 23 packing pieces 29 may be introduced between the edges of the sheets of glass 23 and the end covers 13 and 14 to ensure that the tubular casing 1 remains unstressed. Each packing piece 29 has a length and width equal to or slightly less than the internal cross-sectional dimension of the tubular casing 11 so that the packing pieces 29 fit within the bore of tubular casing 11. The packing pieces 29 are preferably cut from resilient fibre board and, being compressed when the metal bands 28 are tightened, assist in preventing movement of sheets of glass 23.

The glass sheets are thus encased in a resilient water resistant packaging and the timber end frames project from every face of the packaging so that when the packaging is placed on a level surface the timber always spaces the packaging from the said level surface and thus protect the water resistant material of the packaging, and enabling the package to be lifted easily by a forklift truck.

The outer surface only of the casing may be water resistant but the inside surface may also be constructed of a water resistant material or treated to be water resistant. Whilst the parts forming the packaging are preferably water resistant on both surfaces, it is not essential for the package joints to be completely sealed and in some cases it is advantageous to leave a small part of selected joints, i.e. the joints between the tubular casing 11 and the side edge of the end covers 13 and 14 lying beneath bracer bars 20 and/ or 22, unsealed so as to allow the package to breathe.

In a modified construction according to the invention the end covers 13 and 14 are attached to the tubular casing 11, each end piece 13 and 14 being connected along one long edge to a major side edge of the tubular casing. In another construction the end covers are formed as flaps attached to the major side edges bordering the open ends of the tubular casing.

In a still further modification the metal tie bands 28 may be replaced by metal or timber strips connecting the end frames. Alternatively long bolts may be used with nuts or turnbuckles which can be used to adjust the compression force applied by the end frames to the glass packaging.

I claim:

1. A packaging for stacked glass sheets, comprising (a) a tubular casing surrounding the stack, which casing is of rectangular cross-section and formed from a single sheet of resilient waterproof material folded so that opposite edges abut together, said abutting edges of the folded sheet being joined by water resistant tape,

(b) end covers of resilient waterproof material closing the ends of the casing, each end cover including opposed side flaps which bear against outer faces of the tubular casing,

(c) waterproof tape sealing the end covers in position on the tubular casing, said tape joining said flaps of the end covers into sealing engagement with the corresponding outer faces of the tubular casing,

(d) rigid end frames forced over the end covers, and

(e) means connecting the end frames together, which means are tightened to hold the end frames on to the ends of said casing and said end covers and to bind the two end frames together.

2. A packaging according to claim 1, wherein said sheet forming said tubular casing comprises at least one layer of fibrous corrugated material sandwiched between two fiat layers of fibre board, at least one of said layers of fibre board being waterproof.

3. A packaging according to claim 1 wherein said means connecting the end frames together comprise metal bands which pass around the end frames and are located in external grooves formed in said frames.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,705,557 4/1955 Hartman 20683.5 3,050,234 8/1962 Salmon 20662 3,179,552 4/1965 Hauser et al. 20659 3,307,691 3/1967 Vallebona 206-62 WILLIAM T. DIXON, JR., Primary Examiner U.S.Cl. X.R. 217-66 

